Elite Force WPi - Another excellent product from Magnum!

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Here we are at the end of another outdoor events season, which has been perfectly accompanied by Magnum Elite Force WPi! They arrived with me back in April this year, and have been worn for over 50 hours a week since then up until the early part of November. They provide so much comfort, support after the first week of wearing - it was almost a shame to take them off my feet.

My job requires me to be on my feet for 16-18 hours out of every 24 - crazy I know, but it's something which I love doing! I'm not a Doorman or a Security Guard, but I manage security and stewarding teams across the country, deploying up to 150 staff at any one time for one event. By the time we've deployed the morning shift, worked alongside our clients all day, deployed the night shift, dealt with the licensable area kick outs, we end up have no more than maybe 3 or 4 hours sleep. However, even after this short amount of time, it's a joy to put these boots back on my feet and start again.

Comfort:

The Elite Fore WPi are the most comfortable Magnum (and any other manufacturer) boot I have ever worn. They far out perform other Magnum boots I have owned, and have moulded to my feet perfectly. I would suggest wearing them for a week before using them in the field - I wore mine around the office in order to start to loosen the moulding material and let it mould to my feet. I have heard from other people I work with that they often put a further insole in to Magnum boots for extra comfort - however I found no need for this at all.

Star Rating: 5/5

Durability:

Well, after being worn for 50 hours a week for a 7 month period, any boot is going to look a little worse for wear! Apart from two small problems which have recently unearthed themselves, after a good polish with some parade gloss, the boots still look fantastic. The two small problems I mentioned above, are where my toes bend at the ball of my feet, the side of the boot at the point has a very small wear mark - which looks like it penetrates the boot. Also, at the tip of the toe, the top of the boot has come away from the sole slightly. As you can hopefully tell, neither of these problems have caused any real issues with the boot at all - I'll try and get some photos uploaded so that anyone reading the review can see that these minor problems are nothing to worry about.

Star Rating 4/5

Cleaning:

One of the biggest positives for these boots as far as I am concerned is how easy they are to clean. Regular non Ion-Masked boots can be cleaned, with a brush a lot of water or hosepipe for example. The problem is, when you have finished cleaning with all that water, the boots are wet as the material has soaked them top to bottom. This is the beauty of the Ion-Mask technology. I could literally submerge the boots in water (up to the top of my ankle) with no fear of water seeping in. They were washed just by walking through wet grass, puddles, of if they did need scrubbing, at least they didn't soak any water up. A quick shake of the leg to fling the water off them, and you're good to go again. No need to leave them on a heater over night - something which is very difficult when you're living in a caravan/tent/motor home on an event field!

Star Rating: 5/5

Waterproofing/Sweating:

The only downside to the Ion-Mask, and it might just be me as I have had it with other boots, but after wearing these for a while my feet did tend to sweat. Admittedly, I do a LOT of walking in these boots, and so my feet do naturally sweat. There have been so very full on days, where the inside of the boot has been damp - however this is caused from the inside, not anything penetrating the outside. Due to the anti-bacterial element of the boots though, this sweating causes no issues what so ever in a prolonged environment.

I have used some re-waterproofing spray on the top half of the boot (mainly the tongue) to ensure any splashing or very deep water areas are not going to penetrate the boot. During the winter, I tend to re-do this after every use to ensure the snow doesn't penetrate the boot. This has cost me no more than £14 for two cans of spray for an entire season, and even now I have half a can left for the rest of December!

Star Rating: 4/5

Laces:

Laces seem to be forgotten about in reviews, however I think they're an important part of any boot setup. The Magnum laces provided are absolutely brilliant - they haven't frayed or needed to be replaced, and they're still going strong. Also, if the laces are wet, they still remain tight, and do not slip. It's a joy to have a pair of boots that stay tight and don't need to be tightened again and again while they are covered in mud!

Star Rating 5/5

Warmth:

I've only ever had cold feet once in these boots, and that was because I'd not wrapped up properly from the core, and it spread to the extremities! I tend to wear just the one pair of thick socks with these boots, but have also worn regular business socks if I'm on a site visit as well. I think the Ion-Masking helps with windproofing the boots too (I might be wrong) however this does make a huge difference compared to other boots.

Star Rating 4.5/5

Image:

These boots have performed excellently for an entire outdoor events season, and are still good enough for me to wear for our corporate hospitality functions this Christmas. They have been a god given gift in the snow and ice as I've used them to get me from place to place without falling on my arse. I've even run across ice recently chasing an individual, and the boots have held up remarkably with the grip pattern and depth on the bottom of the boot. Even if the grooves are full of ice / snow the boots have remained stead-fast to support me.

Star Rating 5/5

Overall Summary:

All in all these boots are incredible - I would have no hesitation about buying a second pair. With what I do, I would never expect a pair of boots to last me any longer than a single outdoor season, let alone to then continue in to the Christmas season as well, and still look smart enough. I will be replacing these boots before the start of the next season, and depending on what Magnum have on offer at the time, I would have no hesitation in purchasing a new set of the Elite Force WPi's! If you are looking for a durable, waterproof and most of all comfortable solution to footwear you can wear all day long for weeks at a time, these are the boots for you. Should anyone want anymore information, I have no problem with that at all. Either write to magnum and they can pass on your comments, and in the meantime I'll talk to Magnum about contacting the Official testers directly! Images relating to the above with be uploaded as soon as I'm available to do it. In order to see them, you'll need to go to the review images page, and there'll be a link back to this review!

Next update will be coming after the Christmas season - let's see how they cope with lots of parade gloss, snow, ice and generally more wear and tear!